Loyal, Timid, Ridiculously adorable: Yup, that's our fieldnurse
by LovingBOBThePacific
Summary: Lucy Veronica Campbell is nothing more than 13, yet her medical and healing abilities, coming from her beloved, late mother, have got her into the hard world of the Marines to escape her fathers wretched alcoholic hands. She is more experienced than most, but what will happen when she enters the brutal war in the Pacific? R&R Rated T, for language and violent scenes
1. Prologue

**Hello!**

**This is my very first The Pacific fanfiction so I'm pretty nervous - nevertheless I hope you'll like it!**

**Please be nice when you comment - English is not my mothertongue, but I really enjoy writing when I don't have school, handball or other things to do :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Pacific, only my 'OC' and other characters you don't recognize. This fic is based off a bit of research and else then follows the miniseries. No offense is intended towards the real men and women who fought in WW2. This fic is meant for entertainment only.**

**Enjoy ;-).**

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**Loyal, Timid, Ridiculously adorable: Yup, that's our fieldnurse - **

**Prologue:**

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A lonely tear rolled down Lucy's cheek on the same time as another raindrop hit against the train's window. The month on the calendar said February, therefor she watched as the snow melted slowly alongside as the fields the train drove by would become more and more wet.

Lucy smiled softly as she remembered her uncle's last words to her before she left Hawaii.

"_Well, ever since you were born, I knew you were something special, Lu. And this only proves that I was right..."_

What about her parents, you might ask?

The very young girl wiped another tear away as she thought about her childhood. It hadn't been a happy one, at least not before her uncle James, took the responsibility of her.

Lucy was born _Lucy Veronica Campbell_, born on July 5, 1928 in Denver, Colorado as the only child of Elizabeth and Gordon Campbell. Lucy got her looks from her mother who was a half-Cajun, originally from Bayou Chene, Louisiana. Elizabeth had a younger brother, James, who were five years her junior who worked at a hospital in New Orleans as a medic. Lucy's mother had worked on the hospital in Denver as a nurse, having been high-respected and loved among her patients and colleagues.

Lucy had, like her mother had, gained the unique ability to heal people from _her_ mother.

Brushing some hair that had come out of space, behind her ear, she remembered the sad and remarkable story that was the reason that she was sitting there, in a train on the way to New River, North California.

A couple of hours after baby Lucy had been born and were sound asleep in her crib, Elizabeth suddenly couldn't breathe. Lucy's father Gordon had called for the doctors and nurses desperately. The doctors and nurses fought to keep Elizabeth alive, but they unfortunately lost her. Seeing his wife die made the cup flood over on Gordon's behalf. Not long after Lucy had been seen fresh and healthy enough to go home with her father, Gordon started drinking, it becoming a bad habit. It didn't take long before he lost his job as an engineer. That only made the drinking become worse and so got his temper eventually.

Little Lucy grew up with no mother and an alcoholic and rather violent and ill-tempered father. She became an independent girl at only four years old, the very same age where her father hit her for the first, but not last time.

_It must have been autumn back then_, Lucy thought as she took a sip of the hot coffee she had bought. She was only _thirteen_, but she had learned that coffee could taste delightful when you were _really tired._

Lucy still clearly remembered that afternoon that changed her view of her _daddy _forever. The rain fell quickly like right now but back then, the yellow-brown leaves had only _just _started falling while the leaves were long gone now. She had forgot in her happy and innocent play with the other kids down her street, to take her boots off before stepping inside the house as her dad had told her, kindly back then, when he was somewhat sober.

She remembered that sleep still were seen in his eyes that night when he roughly grabbed her and dragged a confused, frightened and whimpering Lucy down the stairs and into the livingroom where he started hitting her, calling her an unthinking and ungrateful brat that had killed his beautiful wife. She shivered when she thought of his breath that smelled far away of alcohol.

The first becoming aware of her dad's abuse, was her uncle James who saw bruises on Lucy's arms at a family reunion in Louisiana, when he put Lucy to bed.

James, who had worked with abused children on the hospital he worked on, couldn't stop thinking of if Lucy would become one of those poor lost children that felt that no one wanted them and only saw suicide as a solution. So he didn't hesitate a second to report his brother-in-law to the police, to prevent his beautiful, little, innocent niece to become like that. He would not be able to live with that. After a couple of months with cases in court, a still small Lucy moved back to Louisiana with her uncle to get a new start and learn more about her mother and their hometown.

Lucy's eyes flicked away from the window as the nice ticketman walked by once again, smiling gently at her. Lucy nodded and smiled sweetly before he was gone, looking for new travelers.

She smiled for herself as she remembered how she and James had discovered that she had the abilities of being a healer like her mother. Lucy that way found another thing she had in common with her mother, other than her beautiful looks and stubborn, timid and charming charisma and adorable personality.

"_Everyone we knew loved you mom, like everyone will love you, sweet heart..." _James had told her once, during their daily discussions and conversations at night, right before he would put her to bed.

Lucy was also able to learn quickly, so in no time you could find the patients on the hospital James worked on, adore Lucy as she walked around at the hospital after school, where James and a few other colleagues could watch her. They would smile when they saw how she cheered the patients up and how she made them feel better right away, alone by holding their hand.

Lucy had only been one year in school because of The Depression when a lifechanging call reached James and Lucy's home in Louisiana.

A higher-up in the Medical Department wanted James to organize and take over after a retired medic on the hospital at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

James had been hesitant, but everyone around him, inclusive Lucy told him to take the offer. He was still unsure, because who was going to take care of Lucy when he was gone, and what about her education?

She remembered he had searched around among his friends, but no one had the money or space to keep Lucy with them because of the Depression. And he couldn't get himself to hire a fosterfamily for her since he was afraid they would treat her like his wretched brother-in-law had. Instead, James did something complete unexpected.

He called the higher-up and explained the situation. By coincidence James mentioned that Lucy had the ability to heal people and had experience with working in hospitals. The higher-up surprisingly told him to bring her with him.

It had taken Lucy a while to get used to Hawaii and the procedures on the hospital, it seemed like there was so much more to do there, than back in the US. But, of course they had both made new friends and was getting along in their new home, Lucy remembered with a fond smile.

Her wavy brown hair had a beautiful glow and her brown eyes were full of life and mischief. Her slender body had curves already and she was in a good shape. The lips were a weak pink and was more than pretty to look on. You would think she was older than the thirteen she was when you looked upon her. At times her hands would move to where she normally could feel her medic bag she wore every time she were at work. Her superior had told her she would get the required medical needs, worthy of an upcoming fieldnurse with the rank as a second lieutenant.

Lucy sighed softly when she thought about that she had already been a lieutenant as a ten year old and was calling after the way older nurses with lower rank than her or them who had no rank.

She had been in the Army Nurse Corps since the start of 1939. Now it was February 1942.

Lucy was used to see torn men and see death, but the events on December 7 1941 haunted her.

She would watch the scenery and her every move every night she lay in her bed. They had lost many friends and enlisted men that day. It was the day where the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.

It was the day where America were brought into World War 2.

Sad by the thought, she looked out of the window where she could see the rain still falling.

She wondered how many young men that more would die in this war. How many men would she be able to save, or perhaps simply make feel a little better before they closed their eyes forever?

Her thoughts also went to her uncle. That very same uncle she saw as her fatherfigure, who had early on volunteered for any operation overseas where they would need medical assistance.

Lucy guessed he was becoming restless at the hospital after everything after the attack had settled down. She just hoped she would be able to get home and thank him for everything he ever had done for her. She didn't realize it before in the train – she would be going to war and train with some men she didn't even know, yet. She would go through some final training while getting to know her unit _she _would choose. The officer she had met, had made himself pretty clear. _She _would _choose _which unit she would fight, laugh and cry with.

"What the hell have I gotten myself into?" Lucy breathed silently.

Her voice and accent was sweet. The Southern accent was obvious, but not as thick as James could be at times.

Hell waited behind the next ocean...and she, a thirteen year old would be there to see it.

She already knew it, and it scared her – she wouldn't be the same after this.

"Next stop – North California!"

Lucy grabbed her bags and walked out of the train, being met with a weak sun, shining down at her. Panic hit her when she realized she didn't know where on earth New River was when a gentle voice with authority and demand of respect called for her "Second Lieutenant Campbell."

Lucy turned and watched as a man with the rank of Captain came towards her.

"Sir." She put down her bags and saluted as she had learned when he reached her.

He gave her a gentle smile "I hope your trip was pleasant overall. It's one long trip."

She allowed herself to smile back "Thank you, sir. The trip was very pleasant indeed, but tiring I must admit."

He chuckled, taking her bags for her as they started to walk.

_What a gentleman...without pulling rank on me..._ Lucy thought.

"I have to be honest with you, lieutenant. I didn't know what I was supposed to think when I got to know I would have a that young female in one of the units."

Lucy smiled gently "It's completely understandable, Captain. I get that a lot."

He smiled back "I bet you do, but.."

With a grunt he lifted her bags up onto the jeep that apparently was going to lead them to the camp. He turned to look at her again with a glimpse in the eye.

"With your abilities and experience, I'd bet those who thinks _you _unworthy will shut their mouths really fast. The Marines protects their own with everything they'd got."

Lucy smiled in relief. At least one liked her.

"Well, with that speech, I can't wait to work with you and your men, Captain" she spoke as the driver drove out of the station.

The Captain put his hand out, Lucy shaking it gently "Welcome to the Marines, Ms. Campbell."

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**I hope you enjoyed!**

**Please review and let me know whether I should continue with this or not and how my English is, what I do good, can do better and so on :)**

**Thank you so much for reading if you've gotten down here!**

**Until next time hopefully,**

**-Camilla**

**xxx**


	2. A New Beginning and Funny Incidents

**Hey!  
**

**I'm back with a brand new chapter - I really hope you all enjoy it :)  
**

**To three reviewers who have reviewed so far - thank you so much for the positive response and sweet messages! :)  
**

**And to the one follower I have so far - thank you!  
**

**Please review after reading since I would love to hear to what you guys thinks about this - pretty pretty please? :P  
**

**And for those who know me and my..hmm...big passion for WW2 would know how much that I can get it as right as possible, but there will of course always in fanfiction be some places where you have to lie a little so the story can go on, so if there's anything historic errors or suspicious things, then it's because I had to change what really happened the tiniest bit - but feel free to ask me about the things you stumble over! But I've also researched A LOT for this fic since I also want to get it as 'right' as possible though it's fanfiction and you can do whatever you like with the story, plotline, characters and so on.  
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**Also, the little chorus at the end and the word _Caterpillar_ is from Hannah Montana: The Movie where the song in this chapter and is also from the movie, is called Butterfly Fly Away, performed by Miley and Billy Ray Cyrus.  
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**Another thing - those who know me really well also knows where I figured to put another WW2 hero ( in my eyes) into the story as a bit softer version of his else tough being - must be because he's so young in this chap :P. This guy was seriously one of toughest of the toughest (and yes, it's a real person I talk about). Though, if he actually have been on the hospital for a fever and violent coughing and met a little girl there, or if he had sisters, I of course can't know :P  
**

**Well, I guess there's no more to say than enjoy and then also that with that disclaimer thingy :P  
**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Pacific, only my 'OC' and other characters you don't recognize. This fic is based off a bit of research and else then follows the miniseries. No offense is intended towards the real men and women who fought in WW2. This fic is meant for entertainment only.**

**Enjoy ;-)  
**

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**Loyal, Timid, Ridiculously adorable: Yup, that's our fieldnurse**

**Chapter 1 – A New Beginning And Funny Incidents...:**

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Few words were exchanged between Captain Brewer and Lucy on the trip towards the camp. The driver, a private first class, had at some point on the road chirped up about the weather and the yellowly fields Lucy had grown fond of in only a few hours. The only response the PFC had got was a grunt from the captain while Lucy just smiled shyly, feeling sorry for him.

The fields in North California were wet after it had been raining at night. Luckily for Lucy, she had left her more 'formal' shoes at home and had only brought shoes she could use in all kinds of weather, with her.

More and more she could see the silhouette of the camp which left her dumbfounded by its size when they finally stopped at the outskirts of it.

A little plop from the mud were heard when Lucy jumped down from the jeep elegantly.

She stood and watched the already busy life going on in the camp, the new Marines had only just arrived. Some of the men gave her puzzled looks behind Captain Brewer's back who walked in front, when they entered the camp. Lucy looked around in awe.

Brewer chuckled amused "Surprised, lieutenant? Didn't think the Marines was as good as this?"

Lucy looked petrified up at the captain, thinking she had screwed up already, about to apologize when the man laughed kindly "Jesus, Ms. Campbell. You look like you've seen a ghost! I was only kidding."

Slightly embarrassed Lucy's cheeks turned pink, giving the captain another reason to almost fall over by laughter.

"Oh! I knew that.." She tried to get the shakiness out of her voice.

The captain's laughter had brought its attention, but seeing that the young girl beside him grew smaller and smaller from the looks they got as they got deeper inside the camp towards the green headtent, Captain Brewer decided that their new fieldnurse had suffered enough for now and therefor dismissed the curious and amused Marines that looked after him and the young female.

They had reached the headtent without further ado and Lucy had been introduced to all the NCO's and several other officers.

Brewer had apologized at her surprised look when a Corporal Benson, attached to How Company had asked her if she had thought of which company she wanted to serve in, either Easy, Fox, George or How. Sadly, Captain Brewer told her that they wanted to get on with the training as fast as possible and therefor she had to choose one now, before she even met the men.

Lucy's mind wandered back and forth. They already had an acceptable amount of medics in Easy, Fox and George, while How was a bit undertipped within medics. Lucy took a chance that day, she knew – but she wouldn't regret it one bit later on.

And so on the interviews began. One after one, the Marines were called in, answering questions, then getting kicked out again. It all went on and on in a cycle, but there was three men that at the end of the day had got the thirteen year old's attention: The Private's Brown, Phillips and Tatum.

Honestly, Lucy didn't know why. They were young, granted, but most of these guys were. Lucy shook her head in her daydream as she stood and watched the night sky the same night.

James would take her out watching the night sky and stars every since she turned seven. It was one of _their _moments.

She couldn't put her finger on what it was with those three Marines. They were just..._special_?

What calmed her down was the feeling she had in her stomach when she thought about them. She was calm and relaxed and already trusted them somehow, though Lucy had a hard time trusting new people easily after the incident with her father.

Towards them her stomach was calm and relaxed, while there was some others that luckily had been placed in another company, that Lucy didn't trust following through the jungle.

At times, Lucy couldn't understand herself. It was like her heart and the feeling in her stomach that decided who to trust and who not to. Before her father had laid hands on her, it had been completely different. She was a bright, open and enthusiastic girl who would talk to everyone who would listen to her – that was another thing people found adorable about her when she was younger. But now, she had a _very _hard time trusting people, especially men, and that could be a serious problem since she worked among them.

But there was one person that wasn't her uncle or the military men she had just met, that still was on her mind. She remembered their meeting still though she had been only five years old at the time and he was fourteen. She had learned to trust him in time and he had given her space to do so. Lucy still hadn't find out who had said what happened to her, to him. But honestly, she couldn't care less. Because of that experience, she had gotten a new friend, until that friend was dismissed from the hospital and moved back to his home in Hughestown, Pennsylvania.

She smiled softly as the flashback flashed before her eyes:

_It had been around six months since Lucy moved back to her mother's hometown in Louisiana with her uncle James._

_James would still find Lucy crying in her sleep, begging an invisible enemy to stop hurting her while she got wrapped up in her sheets as she turned over and over again._

_He would watch her sadly, the sound of her whimpering ripping him apart. He had tried once soothing her, but the look in her eyes when she opened them, was a look James would never in his life want to experience again. Before the little girl realized who he was, he was the monster of her father. She started crying, almost screaming to please not hurt her, that she promised to be nice if he just didn't hurt her._

_Every night the first six-eight months, James would clench his fists, having the hunger to ruin his brother-in-law's face._

_When she had calmed down, James would sit up and hold her hand until the next morning where he would find himself sleeping on the floor, still holding his niece's hand._

_Lucy remembered James was very tired that day. She suspected it to be because of him sitting at her bedside almost every night._

_Like her routine, she was walking around, helping where she could on the hospital, trying to get her mind of what had happened to her six months earlier. Lucy was a sympathetic little girl already at that time. Therefor it was easy to forget when she saw how tough a life other people had and how much more pain they were in._

"_Someone please help!"_

_Lucy turned confused of the outburst. The voice had a special drawl, she couldn't help but notice it. With fast, but small steps Lucy neared the sobbing mother that stood with what looked like her husband and two older girls. James were standing opposite of a child, but it wasn't before Lucy came closer that she could see it was a boy older than her._

_James looked around worried before his eyes locked upon Lucy, waving her over "Luce! Give me a hand here, will you?"_

_Taking the last few steps with such haste, Lucy felt she was flying._

_The boy was pale and shaking from a fever, but stubbornly stayed strong for his mother and sisters sake and make his father proud for being strong. If it wasn't this serious, Lucy could have rolled her eyes dramatically at it. She thought it was so typically boys._

"_Oh, Joe" the oldest of the two sisters sniffed, while the younger one held 'Joe's hand._

"_Ah, don't make such a fuss of it, Margaret. I'm fine."_

_Lucy could hear on his voice that he had trouble breathing. She normally didn't like people who desperately tried to stay strong, saying that they were fine when they weren't. It only hurt more._

_Lucy knew since she had stayed strong and not said a word after her father hit her the first time._

_But in this case, Lucy found it admirable, odd enough. _

_Joe coughed, the sound of it tensing James up. It didn't sound too good._

_His family were shown away by Nurse Johnson while uncle and niece fetched a bed for Joe._

"_It's not too serious, is it, sir?" Joe asked, not taking his eyes of Lucy, which made her feel weird and so...little?_

_James couldn't help but chuckle softly at the young man's desperate try at staying strong._

"_No, it's not, Joseph. We're just going to keep you for a couple of days and see if the fever and coughing goes away as planned. But I'm afraid you'll have to stay away from the mines a few weeks, for your own healths sake. Lu, get Joseph some water."_

_While Lucy stood at the sink with a plastic cup she heard Joe protest with the same words she used whenever she protested. She giggled silently when James gave him the answer:_

"_I'm sorry, Joe. As I say to my own niece, doctor's orders."_

_James has apparently given Joe some rest as he had left to give his parents the needed instructions. Lucy was a shy girl, so she had to in-and exhale before she walked inside the room._

"_Here." Timidly she handed the older boy the cup which he with a 'thanks' accepted and drank with much pleasure._

_Lucy was about to let him be, being at the door when he talked to her "So, what are you doing here?"_

_She turned, with furrowed brows, clearly confused "What do you mean?"_

_Joe snorted "Well, it's not every day you see a girl as little as you in a hospital, walking around in an overgrown tunic, taking orders from the doctors like you were a nurse."_

"_You're not a dwarf, are you?" he added._

_Lucy rolled her eyes, placing both her little hands on her hips, making the young boy smirk in amusement "First; I'm not little! I'm five. Second; It's not overgrown, just too big for me, I'm still growing you know. Third.." _

_She giggled "No, I'm not a dwarf, or a nurse. I'm a healer. That was my uncle, James, who told you no."_

_His eyebrows furrowed "A healer, huh? From Louisiana?"_

_Now Lucy sat down on a chair, placed next to the bed "How could you know?"_

_Again the older boy snorted, doing a weak move to ruffle her hair, being held up in a braid "Because of your accent, silly!"_

_Gently she slapped his hand away "Hey! Watch it! It took me all morning, including breakfast to do this braid."_

_Joe chuckled softly "You're sounding like my sister, you know."_

"_Which one of them?" Lucy questioned._

"_The hysteric one, Margaret. Didn't you hear how she whimpered in the hall? Ella's too little to care, or she's more clever a child than Margaret who thinks of other things than just how her hair looks."_

_Lucy shrugged her shoulders "Well, I just think Margaret was worried for you. I would too, if it was my brother who almost couldn't breathe and was coughing as violently as you did."_

_Joe's eyes glimpsed with amusement "You're the oddest five year old I've ever met! You're not even supposed to know such words yet, I think."_

_Lucy crossed her arms stubbornly "Now, that's not fair. You can't possibly judge a book on its cover."_

_This time, it was Joe's turn to roll his eyes "Here we go again. Only this time you're soundin' like my ma'."_

"_So? Besides, you don't even know me, so how can you possibly say that I'm odd?" Lucy shot back, earning a chuckle and another eye-roll._

"_How impolite of me" Joe spoke sarcastically, holding a weakly shaking hand out "My name's Joseph, Joseph Toye. But you can call me Joe – if you like."_

_Timidly, as the little girl Lucy was, she took his hand and shook it carefully "Lucy...Lucy Campbell."_

_Joe nodded with a rare, but special smile "Nice to meet you, Lu...Lucy!"_

_Lucy laughed at the amusing and quick correction, stopping the blankets down Joe's sides so he wouldn't freeze "It's okay. My uncle calls me Lu, or Luce, if you like."_

"_All right. You can call me Joe."_

_Immediately after he finished the sentence, it became all quiet in the room before the two children burst into laughter._

_Suddenly, after the two of them's laughter had died down, the curtains as doors being ripped apart, revealing a strict looking Nurse Anderson "What is going on in here?"_

_Lucy and Joe's smiles faded. Stammering, Lucy answered "Nothing, Nurse Anderson."_

_The nurse nodded curtly "There better not be."_

_She turned to Lucy "Your uncle told me to tell you that it's time to head home."_

"_But, we're having so much-."_

"_It's not a discussion to take with me, missy. Are we clear?"_

_Lucy looked down "Yes, ma'am."_

"_Well come on, then. Your uncle's waiting."_

_Nurse Anderson didn't wait for her, just disappeared behind the curtain again._

_Lucy turned to Joe, giving him an apologetic look "Sorry."_

_He shook his head with a glimpse in the eye "Nah, it's all right. You gotta live too, right?"_

_The little girl threw a nearby pillow at him, snorting sarcastically "Very funny!"_

_He caught the pillow without any trouble "Ey'! You're mistreating the patient!"_

"_Says who?"_

"_I do."_

_Lucy stuck her tongue out "Too bad, 'cause you don't count!"_

_They both laughed again, more quietly this time though._

_Lucy smiled "Bye, JoJo. See you tomorrow."_

_He furrowed his brows "JoJo? Seriously?"_

_She giggled "Yeah, you said I could call you Joe twice, therefor JoJo."_

_Joe rolled his eyes playfully "You're odd, Luce. Very odd." _

_Lucy was now at the curtain "I know, but I'm proud of it."_

_The boy chuckled amused "All right. See ya, Caterpillar."_

_This time, it was her turn to furrow her brows._

"_Caterpillar? Seriously?" she mimicked._

_Joe threw the pillow after her which she dodged easily._

"_Ah, get outta here! It's sweet and it fits you."_

_Lucy snorted "Well, JoJo's sweet too! And it also fits you very well."_

_He rolled his eyes, mimicking her "Well, Catepillar's sweet too! And it also fits you very well."_

_In frustration Lucy pulled the curtains from each other "I hate you, Joe!"_

_The boy chuckled before the little girl he had come to like very much closed the curtains behind her "I love you too, Caterpillar."..._

After Joe Toye from Hughestown, Pennsylvania had entered the hospital, you wouldn't find James Campbell's niece anywhere but at the Pennsylvanian boy's bed, telling each other jokes, or sharing funny stories. Lucy could clearly remember his drawl and raspy voice when he called her Caterpillar, which she hadn't even today figured out what the hell it meant. But something sweet, indeed. He had said that himself that day they first met.

They had kept contact ever since Joe left the hospital, writing each other often.

Not long after Joe had left the hospital, James had got the call which got them to Hawaii.

Ten days after the attack of Pearl Harbor, Joe wrote Lucy the message that made her cry for at least two weeks. He had enlisted in the army. He also wrote the sweet message about how he hoped that both James and her were all right. She did write a reply, but either the message never reached Joe, or else he had been too busy with something that he had forgotten the letter completely.

Just by thinking of losing Joe as a friend, made Lucy's eyes get watery. She remembered how she had slept in his bed since she was so little and there was a lot of space in the bed, and that she got one of the nightmares only James knew about. She remembered that Joe didn't panic, he was just holding her tight, telling her everything was going to be all right, that no one would hurt her since he was there to protect her.

Lucy could briefly feel how he gently had removed some loose hair from her braid, away from her forehead as he had done back then.

But it was the goodbye she remembered the most. She remembered that she had told herself to be strong and not hysteric as Margaret. But when Joe pulled her into a bearhug she couldn't hold the tears back anymore. Joe didn't say anything or was disappointed with her. He just soothed her before handing her over to James who watched sadly.

Only by that short amount of time, Lucy had got a friendship with an older boy she never would forget and it hurt to know she wouldn't see him every day anymore, or hear him call her his favorite nickname for her. _Caterpillar..._

She shivered slightly of the surprisingly still chilly wind. And it was February.

As she walked back towards her barracks that night, she looked down on the necklace Joe had sent her. It was a medallion formed as a heart, made of a rare stone he had found in the mines when he finally could return as the coalminers son.

Lucy shook her head, smirking by the memory before she hit something solid and fell to the ground. Her head was pretty groggy when she heard a male voice, sounding like he was panicking a bit.

"I'm _so _sorry, ma'am! I didn't see you there, at all!"

The thirteen year old recognized the voice to be Private Phillips's.

Looking up at the boyish private she smiled kindly "No harm done. But private, would you please give me a hand here?"

Hearing her kind and sweet voice who had the sound of authority like a grown-up officer that made shivers down his spine, made Sidney Phillips relax around their new Second Lieutenant and fieldnurse. She was only thirteen, four years younger than him, yet she had surprised him and many others positively. He liked their healer from Louisiana. If only he and the others knew what had happened in her life, what she had experienced, then they wouldn't have thought that she could be so collected, calm and friendly as she was.

"Sure. There you go, lieutenant." He took her outstretched hand and lifted her easily up on her feet. The large amount of training at Parris Island had made its results anyway.

She smiled sweetly "Thanks, private...?"

She knew who he was, but she searched for a way to get to speak with him.

"Uh, Phillips. Private Sidney Phillips, ma'am."

Lucy nodded, looking like something said click "Phillips, yes. I remember you."

"Because my name is a city in Nebraska?" he asked sheepishly.

Lucy giggled "Also that. Well, Sidney, if I may call you that?"

He nodded immediately "Of course."

She continued "Well, turns out I'm in the same company as you, so I just wanted to introduce myself. My name's Lucy, Lucy Campbell. Not lieutenant, second lieutenant, ma'am or anything of that formal stuff. I hate it. You can call me Lucy, Campbell, anything you like – just not the formal stuff. It's killing me."

Sidney whistled teasingly "And I who thought being called lieutenant was funny."

Lucy snorted "Oh, if only you knew."

Both of them chuckled as they began to walk. Sidney was easy to talk to and for that, Lucy was happy.

They walked for a while until they reached where Lucy had her barracks.

"Well, I'd better head back before they catch both of us out of our beds. If I may ask, what were you doing out here anyway? Isn't it a bit over your bedtime?" Sidney asked with a glimpse in the eye.

Lucy smiled, shaking her head as she stepped up on the two first steps "Don't push your luck with a superior, Phillips."

Sidney gave her a mock salute, smirking "No, _ma'am_. Thanks for the advice."

Lucy smiled in disbelief "You're doing it again, private."

In mock frustration, Sidney threw his hands up "What now? I addressed you properly this time?"

With a glimpse in her eyes Lucy said "Good night, Sidney."

"Sid."

She furrowed her brows "Come again?"

His cheeks turned a light pink she could see as the moon shone on his face "You can call me Sid, if you want. All my friends does."

Softly she smiled "Lu. That's what all my friends call me. 'Night, Sid."

He nodded with a small smile "Lu."

She stood and watched him for some time before she disappeared inside her own door, not even caring to change into other clothes. That exhausted she was. One thing she had the energy to was to find the latest letter she had got from Joe. The letter where he told her that he had enlisted in the army. She layed partly hummed and sang a lullaby Joe had sung to her on another one of those sleepless nights when she was five, holding the letter tightly on her chest.

"_Caterpillar in the tree. _

_How you wonder who you'll be._

_Can't go far, but you can always dream._

_Wish you may and wish you might._

_Don't you worry, hold on tight._

_I promise you, there will come a day._

_Butterfly fly away..."_


	3. Only girl in the wor- Eh, Marine Corps

**Hey guys!**

**I'm finally back with a new chap, which I hope you'll enjoy and I certainly hope it won't disappoint your expectations!**

**As far as I can see right now, this chap and perhaps the next will be outside the miniseries, and I assure you, it **_**will**_** follow the miniseries. I just felt like that I needed those 'scenes' since I want to show you how Lucy's relationship with Sid and the other guys in How grows. I don't know, I just don't like jumping directly to the miniseries after only two chapters, but please don't hesitate contact me if you think things go too slow, but I'll do my best – promise!**

**Thank you for the support on this guys, I appreciate it very much and it keeps me motivated :).**

**I've got five sweet reviews which I go read once in a while since they and the people who wrote them, make me smile :D A couple of readers have asked if there will be mixed romance into this, and I have to be honest with you, I don't think there will. Maybe I'll do another fic at some point with romance in it. So, yes it will be some kind of friendship/brotherly love story thingy as bobpacificlover kindly asked in the review. **

**Within updates (I will be mentioning this in all my fics), I've decided to try a new system. I'm not a review/follow/favorite hunter, but I've decided doing it this way:**

**Thus more reactions (reviews, follow, favorite) I get on this and my other fics, I'll look on the previous chapter and see how many did that and that, and do my updates after that. And if there's two fics with the same number actions, it will be chosen as a coincidence, I think :P**

**Within new possible upcoming fics, I've made a poll (profile) about which category to write for next when the time comes. You can vote for two of the following categories:**

**Green Street Hooligans – 2 votes so far**

**Chronicles of Narnia – 2 votes so far  
**

**Lord of the Rings – 1 vote so far  
**

**Band of Brothers – 0 votes so far  
**

**Never Back Down – 0 votes so far.  
**

**On my profile I've also written a bit of info about the ideas I've got for the different categories, but you're more than welcome to come with new ideas if something crosses your mind when you see these categories.**

**As a last thing, I'm doing this songlyrics guessing with all my fics, so don't forget three things, peeps!**

**Review,follow,favorite!**

**Vote,vote,vote!**

**Guess, guess, guess!**

**Here it goes:**

"**Will the angel or the devil die in ecstasy?**

**There's something coming over you**

**Come over me.**

**Falling in love is never easy.**

'**Cause they're so good, I'm so bad**

**So let's get ugly."**

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Pacific, only my 'OC' and other characters you don't recognize. This fic is based off a bit of research and else then follows the miniseries. No offense is intended towards the real men and women who fought in WW2. This fic is meant for entertainment only.**

**Enjoy ;-).**

* * *

**Loyal, Timid, Ridiculously Adorable: Yup, that's our fieldnurse – **

**Chapter 2 – Only Girl in the Wor—Eh, Marine Corps:**

* * *

A loud knock was heard on the door to Lucy's barrack. She groaned as she heard a boyish runner's voice inform her of the very same thing every morning.

"Second Lieutenant Campbell, ma'am? Breakfast is served in the mess at 0530."

She waited moving until she heard that the runner had left the door.

Yawning, she sat up on the cot, stretching her skinny arms in the air, muttering "And I thought the Marines wouldn't have benefits as of a runner waking me up, every single morning, exactly an hour before breakfast is served. Guess I was wrong."

The date was February 18, meaning the serious training and lessons would start today. Lucy would have lessons and PT most of the day, so she would only see Sid, Brown and Tatum during meals and if they had the afternoon off, which was most unlikely. She had had a couple of days to get to know the boys in her company before they were separated once again during training, but she would of course be going on several exercises with the company so they could get to know each other in the field also. One heroic action from one of the men or her could save their or her life, while the most single failure could get them or her killed instantly. It was important to trust each other right away, along with give each other space and support one another. And the most important thing of all, to bond. The bonding thing had gone surprisingly well for Lucy's part. She knew the basic stuff to know about the men in company, but knew a bit more about Sid and his friends William Oliver Brown and Jack Tatum. Brown commonly went under the name of W.O and Tatum for Deacon, simply because of his urge to use quotes from the Bible.

Lucy did her bed and hid the letter from Joe in her footlocker along with the necklace he had sent her a while ago. She changed to her clean uniform and wore her polished boots, in a smaller size than the rest of the man, but still military boots nonetheless, then did her hair so it was sitting in a bun that was supposed to be kind of flat because of the rule that if she weren't wearing her helmet or had PT, she were to wear her beret that sat kinda wry on her head, again because of the bun.

Looking at her watch, she realized that there was at least 45 minutes till she could get any food and she guessed that the boys weren't as much a morning person as she was, so she sat carefully down on her bed and took out the latest letters from Joe and James and laid them in front of her on the bed along with Joe's gift. She debated with herself inside her head whether she could take it on along with her dogtags. Would the jewelry be visible? Would there be trouble if it got discovered? She wasn't sure about the rules in this camp, but she meant that there was a rule saying that unregulated clothing or jewelry would be considered contraband, and she wouldn't, for the dearest in her life, lose Joe's gift for her. His friendship and calm person meant the world to her.

She wondered where he was now and what he would say if he could see her here right now. Would he be even overprotective than James who surprisingly had let her go easily when he saw that this was what she wanted. She smiled softly by the sight of a concerned, but certain Joe march into the camp and drag her out with him, asking her 'what the hell she was thinking of, scaring the heck out of him like that. She was thirteen for Pete's sake. Thirteen year old girls should be home with her friends, doing freaking tea parties or somethin'. Not going to war like some fuckin' G.I. Joe.'

That would be a true dream sight to see, Lucy decided. In her head, she figured that Joe must have been 22 years old by now. It was weird that they had bonded though the huge age difference, her being 5 and him 14 when they first met. But Lucy just guessed that her uncle had said that love and friendship truly had no age.

With a hand on the necklace and the other around James and Joe's letter, she read the letter from her uncle first. It was dated December 31 1941. There had gone nearly two months. She was lightly nervous where he was and what he was doing.

_Hello kid!_

_How's my favorite girl doing?_

_Doing good, I hope. I hope your training's going good and that the nurses are treating you nicely, but who could possibly resist the Campbell's personality and charm, huh?_

_No, I miss you more than anything, Lu and it's weird for me to not see you on the hospital anymore. The patients are also missing you. You remember a Staff Sergeant Todd?_

Automatically, Lucy smiled and nodded by the memory of the Sergeant. Staff Sergeant Tony Todd had come to what was left of the hospital after the attack, and had been one of the victims being rescued up from the water. He had a fractured knee after something heavy and hard hit it during the attack. They still hadn't figured out what had hit the poor man. He and Lucy had grown quite fond of each other and it was one of the persons that Lucy hated to leave behind when she and James decided that she needed to continue her training another place, waiting for establishment of her company in the Marine Corps were ready.

_Yeah, he asked for you the other day. It was with much regret I had to inform him that his favorite nurse were at a save destination in England to continue her training at the Army Nurse Corps, before she would go back to the US, preparing to go to war in the Pacific as the first thirteen year old on the frontlines, serving as a fieldnurse._

_Yes, you may be scolding me endlessly right now while you're reading this, but I thought the guy deserved to know the truth since you knew him so well. He seems like a good guy. Just a man like that I want to see you marry._

At that, Lucy rolled her eyes dramatically.

_He took it…nicely I would say, considering his condition. Don't worry! Nothing happened with him, thus means that he had a pretty sore fist after he had ruined the tray a young nurse had brought him with breakfast, but otherwise, nothing. I gave him something calming and he soon slept as a child._

_You have affected many people here, Lu. Many people loves you and wants you safe, so listen to my humble words: If you get the chance of going home after being over there, come straight home, young lady!_

_Damn straight, I said that. _

_Lu, I love you. Your mother and I were like one soul. Losing her was a loss I will forever mourn over, but seeing her daughter be just like her in both looks and personality filled that hole made in my heart when she died. Please believe me when I say I cannot bear losing my niece too._

_With those words I am going to finish this. About my whereabouts I can't say, but trust me, Luce. I'm safe and sound, longing for your spirit. _

_Stay safe, love._

_Love,_

_Your uncle James._

Lucy quickly wiped the tears forming in her eyelids away, putting the letter down in the drawer, picking up Joe's letter instead. Just as she was about to read, another knock sounded on the door.

Furrowing her brows, she stood up and moved to the door and opened, revealing another runner with an envelope in hand.

"Second Lieutenant Campbell?" the runner asked.

"Yes, what is it?"

"I'm sorry to disturb you, ma'am, but I was around with mail anyway and then this was addressed to you, and I just thought that I would hand it over to you right away."

Softly, Lucy took the letter with a smile "Thank you."

Giving her quick nod, saluting her, the runner ran off.

Lucy didn't dare look at the letter before the door was closed and she sat upon her bed again.

With shaking fingers she opened the letter timidly. Who could it be from?

The young girl was about to cry when she saw the familiar handwriting from a missed friend. No one else than Joe Toye.

_Hey caterpillar._

_Or should I rather say second lieutenant, ma'am? _

_Kid, the mail lady almost gave me a heart-attack when she said there was only a Second lieutenant Lucy Campbell in the register, and not a Staff Sergeant._

_Second lieutenant, huh? Jesus Christ, you're way up in the ranks and you're thirteen years old, while there is me who just completed basic training and has been stationed in D.C. and I'm freaking almost 23 years old!_

_I seem to recall that I've called you odd before, haven't I? Well, it's true._

_I'm sorry for not answering before, but things have been pretty wild since we last wrote. Basic training is sure tough, but that's pretty much old news for you, isn't it?_

_And tell me, what is this crap your uncle has told me a while ago that you wanted to join the Marine Corps and serve on the frontline as a fieldnurse? Are you freaking nuts, Luce?_

_Well, James told me in his latest letter that you had been pretty upset with me enlisting, so I guess we're in a tie. _

_Don't worry about me, sweetheart. I'll be fine. I'm more worried about you to be honest._

_Luce, you're like another sister to me (and considered you the most sensitive of 'em, until James gave me the news about you enlisting – and the bastards let you in?)_

_Well, it's good that you're one of the best darn nurses I have ever met, so I know that you're going to be fine as well._

_Right now I'm reading a magazine about a new thing called the paratroopers. It says that only the best of the best will pass this training that apparently is much tougher than the normal army. Oh, did I forget to mention that we have to jump out of airplanes behind enemy lines?_

_But, Luce, I wanna fight with the best, you know. If I have to go into this goddamned war, I wanna make sure that I have the best man fighting beside me._

_I hope you still like the present I gave you a while ago. I still have yours. I have it close to my heart, mingled in between the chain of my dogtags._

_Luce, I love you as my sister, so don't get hurt, or there'll be hell to pay!_

_I miss you. But remember that wherever you go, you'll be with me, and you with me._

_Stay safe until I see you again, sweetheart._

_Joe._

Once again, Lucy had to wipe some tears away, caressing the heart-formed stone gently.

She chuckled at her stupidity. She knew that Joe would laugh kindly too if he saw her cry now.

The young girl was happy to know that one of her dearest friends were safe and sound and was just happy if he came into the paratroopers, as she too wished that he got to fight with the best, so he would come home again.

She remembered that his birthday were soon, in March. Whistling, she said to herself, half to Joe like he could hear her "23, huh, Joe? Where did the time go?"

Where _did _the time go? She could still see Joe as the fourteen year old he was when they first met.

She looked at her watch, realizing that there were seven minutes until breakfast were served so she put the new letter from Joe down in the drawer and made sure everything in her barrack looked clean and nice. Two minutes later she closed the door behind her.

The walk towards the mess tent took almost five minutes, so she was lucky with the time.

She looked at the surroundings around her. Though it was a military camp, the grounds were clean and so were the tents and the smell wasn't bad either.

When Lucy entered the mess tent, her nostrils were met with a surprisingly pleasant smell, getting her mouth to water. Pancakes!

But she guessed that it was because it was first training day.

Someone whistled "Oi! Luce, over here!"

She smiled by the sound of W.O's voice. Unlike other officers, Lucy chose to eat with her friends though they were privates. No one said anything, but she could feel the stares.

"Mornin' boys" Lucy drawled after getting her plate, sitting down between Sid and Deacon with W.O. opposite her.

"Jesus, someone sure is happy today" Sid smiled.

Lucy smiled, knowing where he was getting at "Don't push it, Sid. Or I'll tell you nothin' at all."

Holding his hands up in mock-surrender he replied "All right, you win. Spill it."

Shrugging she replied teasingly "Oh, nothing special, just got a letter today."

"Wait, I thought you said you didn't have a fella back home?" Deacon asked.

Rolling her eyes, she slapped him on the backside of his head "I don't, genius. It's from a friend."

"Yes, Deacon. A 'friend'" W.O. teased, causing the others to chuckle, whistling.

Lucy gave him a look "Would you just drop it? Hey, weren't you supposed to be at the training field at 0700?"

Sid furrowed his brows "Yeah, why?"

Again, she shrugged, her voice dripping with sarcasm, looking briefly at her watch "Well, I don't know, because it's 0655 right now?"

All three of them stood up "Shit! Why haven't you said anything?"

Lucy chuckled innocently "I thought you knew the clock."

"Haha. Real funny, Campbell. We'll get you back!" W.O threatened kindly while Deacon winked at her.

"Oh, I can't _wait _for it, Brown!" Lucy retorted before Sid nudged her.

"See ya later, yeah?"

Lucy nodded "Sure."

Sid smirked "If I were you, I would seriously watch my back. W.O is not as big a joker as you think he is."

Lucy smiled "I'll keep that in mind. Nice training."

Sid winked "Thanks. Nice...uhm...lessons!"

Lucy chuckled as she walked up with all four trays, the leaving the tent, going straight for her medical lessons with Doc Johnson.

Doc Johnson were probably one of the military men that was understanding and somehow soft in it. Lucy could talk, joke and laugh with him any time during the lessons. And his lessons were actually interesting. Sometimes they went outside too, trying to find other things to help heal other people while out in the field. Some times they would go to the trainingfield and look at the boys training, some times would she join them.

She wasn't scared of getting her hands or anything dirty so she did well in everything Doc Johnson or another officer made her do. But her efforts she could feel at night when she lay in her bed. Her muscles were sore, but she could already feel the change the next day. She became more muscular as the weeks went by.

"Do you mind?"

Lucy looked over at Doc Johnson who stood with a smoke in his hand.

"'Course not" Lucy shook her head " But it's not good for you, ya know."

The medic nodded somehow shameful "Yeah, I know. I'm trying to cut down, seriously."

Lucy smiled softly "That would be a good start."

They became silent when Corporal Benson began talking to the boys after the weapons they were going to use.

* * *

Later that day at dinner in the mess tent, Lucy thought that she now knew EVERYTHING there were to know about the weapons the boys used. They didn't talk about anything else. It seemed like they totally had forgotten the letter they had teased Lucy with. And for that, she was thankful.

But the caliber 30. Browning machine-gun and the 81mm mortar were what the boys talked about the most. The 81mm mortar had caught Sid and Deacon's attention, Lucy came to know as she heard them talk, smiling softly at their jokes.

Big guns had always fascinated them and of course had made sure that the non-coms was informed of that. W.O was just happy to be with his buddies.

"So, what did you do today, Luce?" asked Deacon as they finally stopped talking.

She shrugged "Nothing major. Lessons, PT, more lessons."

Sid chuckled "Interesting, huh?"

"Hmm, yes, pretty much."

W.O looked shocked "Seriously.?"

"No."

The table burst into laughter and Deacon almost choked on his food.

"What about joining 4th mortar-group, Lu? We're all Southernes there" Deacon suggested with a teasing smile since he knew the young girl would look weird of him.

"Thanks, but no thanks, Deacon. Wait, were Carl Ransom not from Vermont?"

Sid chuckled "See, that's the best of it. When Ransom heard that we..." he pointed at Deacon and W.O "and the rest of our group called ourselves for the Rebel-team, he insisted that he was raised in the room to the south, in a house on the street's south side."

"Really?" Lucy was almost falling off her chair, her body jumping from the laughter she held inside herself.

Deacon smiled "It's the truth."

Lucy sighed softly, wiping the tears of joy away from her eyes "Oh, what a character."

"Hey, have you heard there's going to be a dance in town not far from here next week? I've also heard that regiment would give all of us passes" W.O chirped as the laughter died down.

"No shit? Well, I guess that means we're going to the dance. Right, lieutenant?" Deacon smirked.

"Oh, guys, I don't know. I still got a lot to do within my lessons, and I really don't have any clothes to wear for the dance..." Lucy trailed off, not feeling very eager to go the dance.

"Come on, Lu – it's going to be fun!" Deacon pleaded.

After getting puppy eyes from Deacon, Sid and W.O, Lucy sighed "Well, then I guess we have a dance to go to next week, huh?"


	4. The Dance

**Hey you all!**

**Thank you all for the positive support on this, it really means a lot :')**

**Days have been hectic and it's because of that I haven't updated – I've also been quite "down" lately, but I believe that some writing will do the trick, don't you think? :).**

**A little note: I don't know if you noticed, but the place where Sid, W.O and Deacon trained were really New River, North Carolina instead of New River, North California.**

**Deep apologies everyone! - I guess that nobody's perfect, eh?**

**I really hope you'll enjoy this chap!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Pacific, only my 'OC' and other characters you don't recognize. This fic is based off a bit of research and else then follows the miniseries. No offense is intended towards the real men and women who fought in WW2. This fic is meant for entertainment only.**

**Enjoy ;-).**

* * *

**Loyal, Timid, Ridiculously adorable: Yup, that's our fieldnurse**

**Chapter Three – The Dance:**

* * *

_Everybody's got a dark side_

_Do you love me?_

_Can you love mine?_

_Nobody's a picture perfect_

_But we're worth it_

_You know that we're worth it_

_Will you love me?_

_Even with my dark side?_

**March 1942 – New River, North Carolina:**

"Come on, Sid – let's get 'em!" Deacon enthusiastically chirped as they were doing their daily competitions in the mortar squads, seeing who could collect their mortar on the shortest amount of time.

Lucy smiled softly at the men for their enthusiasm and their hearts, beating for competitions. She stood next to Corporal Benson whom watched the men from a distance. The young second lieutenant could easily have used her break on something else, but she enjoyed watching her friends compete wholeheartedly.

"C'mon buddy, they're catchin' up!" Deacon drawled, causing Lucy to giggle.

Though Lucy would dare to say that Deacon and Sid were some of the more quiet men, they both enjoyed competing – and Deacon wanted to be the quickest.

She had caught him in studying _The Marine's Handbook_, the red book which were passed out to every private in the Corps.

Lucy somehow felt like a proud mother, though all of the men were older than her.

In the beginning of March, Deacon had been promoted to Corporal, even before he had got his stripe as an NCO.

Sid and W.O didn't have any wish of promotion, but they enjoyed competing, Lucy knew.

Lucy rubbed her left ear as Corporal Benson blew the whistle as 4th mortar group, involving Deacon, W.O and Sid, held their hand up as the signal of being finished. With him had Benson a watch. The younger girl beamed as it was pronounced that Sid's group had collected their mortar in the magnificent time of fifty-five seconds. Corporal Benson never praised them.

Later, in the mess-hall at lunch, Lucy felt the excitement boil inside the boys. Not only the time for their recent mortar-collecting time had caused this, but also the message they had got over the speakers in the hall that all men had got passes at dinner-time, so the men could get the last bit of civilization, before the hard training began. The men were to begin training the next morning at 0830.

Lucy knew that the men had waited in anticipation for this, but herself, she was a little more hesitant. She had never in her life been at a dance, but of course she hadn't told the boys.

One of the main reasons was that she never had been able to stay in school long enough for high school back home in Louisiana. Of course she had got lessons in Hawaii and were really good to read and write, but there were never being held dances there, like in High Schools back home.

She felt like an outsider within most things girls do at least once in their lives. She had never been at her friends birthday parties when she was a little girl, she had never been at a dance – and worst of all, she had never had a boyfriend. The last were maybe just a bit melodramatic since she only was thirteen, but most girls on her age she saw in town, were walking hand-in-hand with a boy on the same age, and she was pretty sure they weren't siblings just holding hands.

"Hey, something's wrong, Luce? You look a bit sad there." Sid asked with a concerned smile.

Weakly Lucy smiled "No, everything's fine."

Though Sid didn't look too convinced, he let the topic pass.

"So, what are you going to wear tonight, Lu?" Deacon asked, biting a piece of bread off, dipping it down into the chicken soup.

Nervous about what they had to say about her decision, she said "Well, I—I'm kinda not going?"

"What?" W.O asked in shock.

While Deacon looked like one big question mark, Sid asked "The hell you mean you ain't goin'? It's the last dance here, Lu – you can't miss it!"

"_And _you promised us you would go" Deacon pointed out before Lucy got to say anything.

The younger girl sighed, knowing this would be one hell of a ride with those stubborn guys "Guys look, it's just a dance – it's no big deal if I miss this one. Besides, I've got to learn how to patch you guys together once we're out there, right?"

"Luce, you are already a great nurse, but nurses also need to relax once in a while, yeah?" Deacon spoke wisely.

"But, it's not in my nature to relax..." the younger one muttered, causing the three men to chuckle.

Sid blinked "Don't worry. We'll teach ya'."

"Besides, Lu" W.O laughed " It's not like we're going to laugh at you, if you're a bad dancer."

Then the mood-swing came into Lucy. Offended, she stood up "What on earth is _that _supposed to mean, Brown?"

At first the three of them looked shocked, whereupon W.O began carefully to apologize and explain with those big sad puppy eyes what he meant with it.

"Lu, please" Sid begged and slowly took her hand to quiet and make her sit down, but immediately she ripped her hand out of his grasp. She was pale like a ghost and the way she had ripped her hand out of Sid's had been like if she had burned it.

"Luce?" Sid asked nervously, standing up slowly, as if not to scare her like she was a doe.

With shaky hands and a pretty lame excuse, involving some papers to do for next lesson where she had _PT_ with the boys, she stormed off, leaving some concerned men look after her.

A smack and after wards a whimp was heard behind Sid as he still stood in the same spot, looking after their young fieldnurse.

"Ouch! Goddamn it, Deac, what was that for?"

* * *

Her hands were shaking, her head was spinning. Lucy felt like a chased animal as she stormed back towards her barrack. The boys had hugged and "touched" her many times, and then the nightmare returns when she expects it the least. And then it happens when Sid, of all people, touches her?

_Poor, poor Sid_. _He don't know what's going on..._

The flashback had been fast and short, but it was still enough to make her shake and sweat.

This were among other things been one of the reactions Lucy had gotten for many years. The nightmare still haunted her and it never seemed to stop.

She tried to forget, but she could not. Never.

What had she done wrong? What if James had never found out?

Those thoughts kept running through her head. If James hadn't found out and taking her to him all those years ago, she had most likely been dead by now, by one or another way.

Lucy missed her mum badly, though she had never met her. But one thing she always remembers, oddly enough, was her voice. Her angelic singing voice were what was lulling her to sleep.

Her fathers words ruined it all. "_You killed my beautiful wife! MY wife!..."_

Lucy hugged her knees as the bunk creaked beneath her weight – not that she was weighing too much. At all.

_Did I? _She thought for herself.. _Did I really kill my own mother, just by being born?_

For once, she let her thoughts land on her father as silent tears slowly rolled down her cheeks and hit her knees. She wondered if he was still in jail – she couldn't remember since the sentence had been held all those years ago. Or was he out, looking after her, or James? She shivered by the thought, letting out a tearful sob.

Her thoughts then wandered to James, wondering where he was, and worrying that he couldn't tell her where he was – meaning he most likely were out there, on a mission. Then her thoughts wandered to Joe. She wondered where he was now, if he was still in D.C and if he would make serious business within joining these "famous" paratroopers. She wasn't much for admitting it, but if Joe really had to go fight in the war, she'd rather have him where he would fight with the best.

"Luce?"

She heard one of the sweetest drawls and she knew who it belonged too. Sidney Phillips.

Lucy looked up with puffy eyes to see a hesitant Sid stand there, looking concerned, not really knowing what to do. His eyes revealed it all though.

Without hesitation, Lucy ran the few meters there was, and threw her arms around his neck, him catching her, holding her like he would to comfort a little sister.

Silently she sobbed into his shoulder while he comfortingly rubbed her back in circles, hushing her down.

"Aw, Luce" Sid whispered before moving to her bed, placing both of them down, his arms still around her smaller body.

"It's okay, it's going to be okay" he soothed, whispering down in her hair.

"He keeps haunting me, Sid" she sobbed, wrapping her arms tighter around his neck like she was holding onto him for her life.

"Who keeps haunting you, Lu?" he hesitantly asked.

A long moment past without none of them saying anything. He knew, that whatever "he" was, he had hurt the girl who was like a sister to him and that thought alone, made him angry and gave him the thirst after revenge.

Sid also knew that this was a painful topic for Lucy, and he wouldn't push her to tell him something if she didn't wanted to. But he knew that she would tell him eventually anyway.

To be honest, and something he had realized in that very moment, Luce had never told them about others than this guy, Joe, who was one of her best and very first friends, though he was way older than her, and them her uncle James. He realized that he didn't know anything about her parents.

"My father" she sighed, like she had been carrying on a heavy burden. Maybe she had.

He felt her loosen up and kept quiet as he deep inside knew that she would continue.

"When I was four...was...was the first time he hit me."

Sid's fists clenched by the news. Inside himself he swore to himself and swore to Lucy, that he would never allow _anyone _to put as much as a hand on her again. She was their little angel who were there to protect them and patch them up if they got hurt.

Sid would at any time give up his life, if just it gave Lucy the chance to live and be happy, and smile. Most of the guys in How would. She had enchanted them all with her personality and looks.

"Wh—Why?"

His voice cracked.

"My..mother died a few hours after she had given birth to me. Dad went furious, started drinking, lost his job, only to drink more" she replied like it was as simple as that.

"But it was not your fault."

Lucy could easily picture Sid as a little kid, stamping his foot in the ground in a childish way, alone by the voice he spoke with now.

She shrugged, about to say something when Sid cut her off sharply "_No, _it _wasn't, _Lucy. You must not, at any time, _believe that._"

Tiredly, Lucy simply nodded and closed her eyes, falling into a deep sleep – as easy as that.

Sid couldn't help but chuckle a bit. That was one of the things that was so fantastic and fascinating about her.

Careful, he arose and put her head gently down on her pillow, pulling a blanket on a nearby chair over her, so she wouldn't freeze.

He removed some hair from her forehead and kissed her temple whereupon he left to inform their CO that their fieldnurse needed to rest upon a bad headache, so she at least would be able to celebrate the tiniest bit that night. The CO agreed eventually.

TP...

When Lucy woke up, she sat up to see a small lap of a piece of paper fall to the ground, right next to her bed.

She leaned out to snatch it up from the floor, but before she knew of, the blanket that had lied over her, slipped off her body, her letting out a surprised gasp as she hit the ground.

She picked the small lap up and sarcastically said to herself as she stood up "Elegant, Luce, _very _elegant."

Dusting herself off she read the note, the writing belonging to Sid she guessed.

"_Look under your bed._

_We won't take no for an answer!_

_-W.O, Deacon and Sid."_

Frowning she gently put the piece of paper on the bed, before crouching down, feeling her way under the bunk. When her hands collided with a solid box that certainly hadn't been there before, she furrowed her brows. What had they been up to while she was asleep?

Then she realized that Sid knew her personal past, and that she had missed PT as she could see outside her window that it had become darker. She judged it to be around 5 o'clock in the afternoon.

She pulled the box who turned out to be quite a size, out from the bunk and lifted it up on her bed. Suddenly she felt like a little child for Christmas who was about to open her first present.

Lucy gasped as she saw that the massive box contained. The most beautiful dark-green dress she had ever seen, filled her eyes with Christmas lights. She smiled, touched at the next little message the boys had made.

"_'Cause you look beautiful in green." _it said.

The box also contained some matching shoes which had a small heel.

She wasn't sure if the CO would allow this, but she couldn't help but change after she had read the very last message _"We'll pick ya up at 0530 pm – waky waky, sleeping beauty!"_

Lucy had a small room where she could bathe and stuff, so she went out there to make herself ready.

Two minutes before the correct time, she heard the door burst open and then heard her noisy friends call for her with enthusiastic voices.

"You're two minutes early, you know that?" she chirped while she was putting the last touch on her hair, which she had chosen to put up into a tight bun.

"Well, that's scary" W.O commented.

"How did you know?" Deacon asked.

"Why, I'm just pretty darn good, Deac. You should know!" she replied with a laugh.

"Well, hear how sassy she is – her majesty is in a better mood now, maybe?" Sid teased good-heartedly.

With a fast swip Lucy threw her brush out into the room, hoping to hit Sid.

"You missed!"

"I can't see you, ya mick! _That's why _I missed!" she retorted.

"Well, if that's the case, your aim is pretty good anyway. You only missed with a short distance" Deacon chimed.

"Shut up, Deac" W.O said.

"Deacon, always the gentleman" Lucy said, walking out from the bathroom, only to be met with her friends having their mouths wide open.

Luce frowned "You guys trying to catch flies or somethin'?"

One by one, their mouths closed.

"You" W.O started.

"Look."

"Absolutely beautiful" Sid finished.

Lucy blushing furiously then slid each of her arms through respectively Deacon and Sid's arm while W.O then were promised the "first dance".

The ride by train took a little half an hour and the four friends then walked through town, only to arrive to a packed village hall.

Taking turns, Lucy danced with all three boys all night, only being interrupted by a couple "brave" Marines, "daring" to dance with How's fieldnurse, under sharp observation from the three men.

At one of the last dances for the night, Luce danced with Sid to a pretty quiet song.

Lucy was touched to tears when she heard some hushed words slip out of Sid's mouth "I will _never _let him or anyone hurt you, _ever_ again."

And she knew that he was speaking the truth...

* * *

**I know, the ending may be a bit lame - bear over with me? :/**

**However, since you're down here anyway, please make my day/night and leave a review for a thankful me to read? Pretty please? xD  
**

**-Camilla  
**

**xxx  
**


	5. Unbowed, Unbent, Broken

**A/N:** _You guys. I am so sorry for the incredibly long delay, but I am now back with a new chapter which I hope you'll enjoy. - Life just got in the way for a bit here, but I am now finally back, completely in the writing mood, so do not fret :) I seriously don't hope my writing are too rusty :P_

_Well, without further ado, I wanna thank everyone reading, reviewing, following and favoriting :)_

_-So, I've jumped a bit in time to not keep you up for the miniseries start any longer, but Lucy's thoughts will reflect on what happened before she got to where the chapter starts :)_

_-Any bad sayings about the Japanese are from the tv-series and I mean absolutely no disrespect with them._

_-And as you might have noticed, Lucy seems pretty 'grown-up' of her age, but I'm like: Wouldn't you do that eventually if you had been abused when you were little, plus becoming a nurse at a very young age – plus, being around swearing Marines doesn't exactly help on her tact and tone, does it? :P Sorry, but if I let out some of the lines being said in the miniseries, it wouldn't be as fun a story, would it? It is fanfiction after all :)_

**Disclaimer: ********I don't own The Pacific, only my 'OC' and other characters you don't recognize from anywhere. This fic is based off a bit of research and else then follows the miniseries. No offense is intended towards the real men and women who fought in WW2. This fic is meant for entertainment only.**

******Enjoy ;-).**

* * *

**Loyal, Timid, Ridiculously Adorable: Yup, that's our fieldnurse**

**Chapter Four – Unbowed, Unbent, Broken:**

* * *

"_I will not break the way you did_

_You fell so hard._

_I've learned the hard way, to never let it get that far._

_Because of you,_

_I never stray too far from the sidewalk._

_Because of you,_

_I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt._

_Because of you,_

_I find it hard to trust, not only me but everyone around me_

_Because of you!_

_I am afraid..."_

_August 7, 1942 – Guadalcanal_

The low rumble from explosions sounded so distant and foreign to Lucy's ears as she sat in the ship's mess where several Marines were filling up their stomachs with what could be their last meal.

Chattering and roars of laughter were common among the men. The teen guessed it was their way to cope with the up-coming battle. This was it. The day had arrived where Lucy would meet direct combat and warfare once again. She hadn't seen much action since the attack of Pearl Harbor, which was a horrific sight that forever was burned into her mind.

In June, they had left North Carolina and traveled by train to San Fransisco where from there, they had stayed a couple of days where after they were sailed by troop-ship to Wellington, New Zealand.

James had sent her a letter in June, with the news of him being in England with his unit while Joe had sent one too, with the news that he was stationed in Maryland, waiting to be sent to Georgia to join the paratroopers. The disturbing news came from James; her father had been unleashed after nine years of imprisonment. _Nine years._

Paranoia and anxiety had filled her head the couple of weeks after the news, but Sid, Deacon and W.O had kept her sane. When she thanked them, they told her that was what friends were for.

Lucy's head was clear. She couldn't afford to think of her wicked father. Though, it made her nervous to know that he was out there when she got home from this. Somewhere.

On August 1, she had received a reply from Joe, telling her he had been in training for a month now. He told her about his CO whom apparently was an idiot, about the good officers, bad officers, and most important of all, his fellow soldiers. He wrote her not to worry about neither James or her dad. James would be okay while her father certainly would not if he ever neared Lucy again, he had written. And Lucy had smiled at the comment, truly wanting to believe him. And also, he wished her a belated happy fourteenth birthday on July 5th, where she had been celebrated with scrounged cake and a little bit of alcohol – whereof Lucy touched the least of the latter.

Lucy had also sent a picture with the letter. It was a photograph of her, Sid, Deacon and W.O right before the boys left for their 72 hour furlough for Memorial Day. They all had begged her to at least come with one of them, which she had politely declined, although she had begun to become lonely after the first 24 hours.

Joe had commented on the picture, calling her one beautiful gal, which had made Lucy blush furiously when she was on her own. She had never thought herself beautiful, more casual.

He also sent a photograph though, of him and some of his buddies called Bill Guarnere, Don Malarkey, Floyd Talbert, Chuck Grant, Skip Muck, Alex Penkala, Walter Gordon, Joseph Liebgott, Denver Randleman and Darrell Powers. They all looked so young, but Lucy was sure they all were older than most of her boys. Immediately, she could see who of those guys Joe was – and she had to admit he had become pretty handsome.

Lucy had looked on the back of the photograph, finding a date saying July 1942 where after their names and ranks followed.

_Camp Toccoa, Georgia._

_Company E, 506th PIR, 101st Airborne Division._

These words were like burned into Lucy's memory.

"Today's the day, Marines!" one of their officers exclaimed, making the room become somehow quiet. Lucy could just about hear bombs whistling outside when he continued "This is it."

"Today's the day!"

Then another officer at the food-line gave out orders "Get moving. Don't wait for a seat. A lot of Marines to feed! Move! Move! Move!"

"Oranges coming through. Hey come on, guys! I worked hard for these oranges!" Sid's voice pleaded.

A roar of cheering men were heard, making Lucy look up. She chuckled quietly when she saw Sid dodge his way through the lines of Marines who took one or two of the many oranges he was carrying. She smiled at the boys beside her, laughing and cheering over something Lucy never would understand was.

"Dessert!" Sid exclaimed, pouring the rest of the oranges out onto the table, causing Lucy to shake her head in disbelief.

"Oh, hey!" the other guys exclaimed as well.

"Make sure you save one of those for me, Luce!" Sid told their fieldnurse. Immediately, Lucy grabbed two from a guy the most of the company knew as Wilbur 'Runner' Conley, the Marine giving her a mock-pout to laugh at.

"I just want to get off this goddamn rust bucket! I can't hear myself think" Runner groaned.

"At least they give you a good meal before your send-off" another Marine, Lew 'Chuckler' Juergens commented.

"Yeah, like the electric chair" Bill 'Hoosier' Smith put in dryly, placing a hand on Runner's shoulder. "But you, Runner?"

"Yes?" Runner replied, looking up along with the rest of the people at the table.

"You have won a trip to a tropical paradise, called Guadal Kenel...Guada...I still can't pronounce it" Hoosier gave up with a prr.

"Guadalcanal" Lucy commented loudly along with Sid and a couple of others.

"Yeah, well" Chuckler commented, drowning the others out "Whatever it's called, you guys are lucky I'm here, 'cause I'm planning to take out an entire Jap regiment all by myself!"

Chuckler stabbed his fork through his chicken piece, wrapping an arm around Lucy as the other boys laughted "Ain't that right, Luce?"

"Yeah, right" Lucy replied dryly, smiling while she rolled her eyes dramatically "Just keep your sorry ass out of trouble, Chuckler, 'cause I ain't comin' patchin' you up when you come back with that Jap regiment on your fucking tail."

"How you plan on doing that anyway, Sergeant York?" Robert Leckie asked after wards when the laughter had died down after Lucy's comment.

Doing a swift movement with his head, Chuckler replied as it was as simple as that "Line 'em up, mow 'em down. Real turkey shoot!"

"I got a feeling it's gonna be a little more complicated than that" 'Lucky' as How called Leckie commented, gaining an 'Amen' from Lucy who in return gained a look of mock-hurt from Chuckler.

"No, it's gonna be a turkey shoot!" Chuckler replied with his mouth full of food, Leckie giving him a slap at the back of his head.

"Can someone remind me why we're here again?" Private First Class Ronnie Gibson asked.

"We're here to keep the Japs out of Australia" Sid replied.

"No, we're here to keep the Japs-."

"Something about shipping lanes!" Chuckler interrupted Runner, still with his mouth full of food.

"_And so the arguing begins" _Lucy thought, rolling her eyes as the men began to talk in between each other.

"Shut up for God's sake!" Lucy laughed, giving Runner the opportunity to turn to Leckie "Professor Leckie, enlighten us."

"Wanna know why we're here?" Leckie asked bored, juggling with an orange in hand.

A common 'mmmh' were heard, causing Lucy to smirk.

"Without a sign, his sword the brave man draws, and asks no omen but his country's cause." Leckie showed his poetic side once again.

Lucy smiled fondly – that man certainly could do something with words.

There was a moment of silence as Lucy watched the men nod seriously. That was until Hoosier broke the silence "Give me back my smokes."

"Leckie, you gotta stop this" Chuckler commented, causing Leckie to smirk, his eyes meeting Lucy's.

"Let's go, boys. Everybody on deck!"

An officer came down the ladder, making the room become silent "Let's move!"

"Everybody topside for a pre-landing briefing!" came the orders as all the men began to make their way towards the small ladder.

Forever the gentlemen, the boys Lucy knew helped her up the ladder, making sure none of the others were pushing.

On the deck, everyone was dressed in their combat-uniforms. Lucy stood with her group of friends from the table. The badge showing she was a medic had been taken off for her own security. The Japs liked to shoot the medics first so the soldiers had none to patch them up. Therefor, she wore her USMC-uniform with almost the same badges as the men, along with her medic-kits and equipment a nurse with the rank of a 2nd lieutenant needed.

Lucy had gone used to swearing, so she didn't wince an inch when one of the officers, most likely a captain or colonel she guessed since she quite couldn't see the insignia, began to speak "Forget all the horseshit you've heard about the Japs. They had their turn. Now it's our turn. "

She looked to her left as she felt a soft squeeze at her hand. Sidney's blue, calm and focused eyes met hers. An encouraging smile crossed her face as she saw how the Marine watched her with concern, his eyes silently asking her if she was ready for this. Was she?

"The treacherous bastards may have started this war, but I promise you that we will finish it!"

"Yeah!" was the common reply from the Marines.

"The Japs want to use that shit island and its airfield to kill us! We'll yank the surviving Japs out of their shit-filled holes. They'll go round-eyed when the first American plane lands on their airfield! Heads down in the boats! Hit the beach. Keep moving till you rendezvous point some primary objectives. When you see the Japs, kill 'em all!"

"Yeah!" heard Lucy Sid yell beside her once again, along with the rest of them. Lucy kept silent – her job would be to patch Marines up if they were hit, not kill the Japs, unless they were about to kill her friends or fellow Marines. She had a knife in her boot and a side-arm under her jacket – and she knew how to use it.

"Go! Let's go get 'em!"

Slowly, the green-dressed Marines began to fill out the Higgins-boats. In turns, the men closest to Lucy received a hug; Hoosier, Runner, Chuckler, Leckie, Deacon, W.O and Sid. Sid's lasted the longest. The other medics and Lucy had been split up in different boats. Lucy was placed with Doc Vanderbilt, her 'medical CO'.

The two enjoyed each others company and John, which was Vanderbilt's name was another face she could always count on and turn to if something bothered her. Holding a hand out for her, John gracefully helped her down into the boat as she reached the end of the net hanging out from the ship's side. Lucy had never been particularly afraid of heights, but she had to admit; there was hell of a long way down.

As Lucy sat down in the back of the boat, she took a moment to look at the Marines in front of her, trying to remember all their faces, or in this case, the back of their heads. She could glimpse at least a couple of familiar faces, though all of them had their backs to her.

"You ready?" Doc Vanderbilt asked beside her.

Lucy turned to meet his eyes, answering honestly "As ready as I'll ever be." She lowered her voice, it sounding a bit fragile "I'm _petrified_."

Booms were heard in the distance and planes flew over as the columns waited for the last Marines to come down.

With a reassuring pat on Lucy's knee, Vanderbilt gave her a smile "I guess we all are, Lu."

Slowly, but finally, the boats started to move. The crew directing the boats towards the beach were dressed in blue polo's.

All of them kept their heads down. Lucy's eyes followed the planes flying over them, only to disappear again some split-seconds after. She felt her heart beat against her rib-cage and she felt like she was going to hyperventilate.

"_Get yourself together, girl" _she told herself _"You can't show weakness now. Not after you have come this far. No fear, no regret."_

_No fear._

_No regret._

Feeling Vanderbilt nudging her arm, her eyes narrowed to his hand, holding out a piece of chewing-gum "Gum?"

With a curt nod, Lucy took it and put it into her mouth. The movement in her mouth along with the sound of the waves colliding with the sides of the boat calmed her nerves a bit.

Suddenly, before Lucy could even distinguish what was happening, she watched how the port in front of her further up opened slowly. With shaky movements she managed to put enough pressure on her feet, so she was ready for the running ahead of her.

"Hoof it up to the beach!" and "Spread out!" were the cries from the superiors.

Side by side, Doc Vanderbilt and Lucy hit the beach in their own thoughts and it took awhile to realize that they had nothing to run for. Around them, they could still hear the bombs whistling, but it was not directed against them.

The first wave of Marines from the light platoons were sitting under the palm trees, grinning at the newly arrived Marines whom stood and looked utterly confused around. There had been no enemy on the beach and the attack hadn't continued into the jungle.

"What took you so long?" asked one of the Marines.

"Welcome to Guadalcanal" commented another.

Chuckling to themselves, Lucy met up with the men of the 4th mortar squad. You could say that their first beach-landing had been more than successful.

"Move it up the beach, Marines" came the orders behind them.

They didn't need to be told twice. A new wave of Marines came in during every minute.

* * *

4th mortar squad and Lucy found a place for themselves where there were fallen coconuts tress. Currently, Chuckler was trying to break one of them.

"Ah, now I've got you, you son of a bitch" he commented happily, with a cancer-stick as Lucy liked to call it, hanging out of his mouth.

Lucy sat opposite Leckie who sat on a tree-root. Sid jumped down beside him.

When Chuckler realized that there was another shell on the nut, he looked at Leckie "Hey, now what do I do?"

Smirking, Lucy replied "Why don't you use your head, Chuck? That ought to work."

The two men around her laughed, giving her high-fives before Leckie, who was eating an orange spoke to Chuckler, who had stuck his tongue out at Lucy whom happily retorted the gesture "I think the islanders use a machete or a rock."

"Again, use your head, Chuck" Lucy replied dryly, casting a wink at the dark-haired man.

"Yeah, try use your head, Chuckler. It's big and rocklike" Runner chimed in a meter or so away.

"Shut up, morons" Chuckler grinned.

Straightening herself out, Lucy placed both hands on her hips "Is that a way to speak to a superior, Juergens?"

With a mischievous glimpse in his eyes, Chuckler went down on his knees, bowing up and down with outstretched hands "No, _ma'am_. My deepest apologies, _ma'am. _It will never happen again, _ma'am._"

This caused an uproar of laughter from the group.

With a roll of her eyes, she noticed that other Marines began to stare at the scenery with amused glances.

"Juergens, get _up" _she ordered embarrassed, pushing Chuckler so he ended up on his bum "People's staring."

Chuckler winked "Exactly." He then went back to his seat at his coconuts.

_Asshole._

Clunging an arm around Lucy's shoulder, Sid exclaimed "Women's got the power!"

"Jesus, that took you long to find out" Lucy replied cockily with a yawn as the dot of the I.

Another roar of laughter.

"Hey, Johnny Reb. Marlene Dietrich" Leckie spoke, blinking at Lucy, holding two pieces of the orange he had just worked on, out for each of them.

With grateful smiles, the two youngsters took the fruit and enjoyed the fresh and sweet taste in their mouths.

"For what it's worth, Corporal Dobson says the Japs might have poisoned the coconuts" a young medic, Lucy didn't remember the name of said.

"They poisoned a billion coconuts?" Runner questioned, looking at Lucy who shrugged, sucking on her fingers to taste the juice of the orange.

"Oh shit! My hand!" a voice rung out.

The group looked up to see a Marine whom apparently had cut his finger.

Lucy was about to stand up when the medic put on his helmet and excused himself from the group who smirked at the stupidity before them. Even Lucy smiled, leaning back at the tree root with a content sigh.

If things could keep being so peaceful with minor casualties such at the incident before, Lucy wouldn't mind. But she would fool herself if she expected her war to be like this, she knew.

_And yet..._

"2nd lieutenant Campbell" a voice called.

Lucy stood up as she recognized 1st lieutenant Hugh 'Ivy League' Corrigan's voice. He was the platoon leader of Leckie and the others. Having the same dark hair-color as Leckie, Corrigan also had this start of a full beard with a reddish color.

"I believe and hope that my men behaves" he smiled, giving Chuckler and the rest of the machine-gun squad a look.

Broadly, Lucy smirked, the mischief clear in her eyes "Yes, sir. They're always helpful and not hopeless morons at _all._"

_Notice that irony may have been used in the sentence above._

While Leckie and the others feigned mock-hurt, Corrigan smirked and blinked "I truly hope that these words will become the truth one day, lieutenant."

"So do I, sir" she smiled broadly.

The 1st lieutenant let out a little laugh while the men around Lucy looked on amused, still feigning.

Taking a draw of his cigarette, the lieutenant changed topic "Well, intelligence has it the Japs moved back into the jungle. Clean the sand out of your weapons. We move in three minutes."

"Lieutenant" Corrigan nodded at Lucy before he walked away.

"Let's go find some Japs" he then said to some of the others further down the lines where men were laying.

As Sid and the rest of the boys began to make themselves ready, Lucy just felt like sitting down. And so she did, looking at the men packing up their gear while she sat with all of her equipment on.

"Oi, come on, Luce" Leckie spoke as they finished one by one.

"Leave me alone, Lucky" she snapped good-heartedly.

Chuckler then snorted and lifted Lucy by the waist and threw up on his shoulder "Ah, come on, you stupid old cow."

Lucy knew he meant it sweetly, but as he began to dance around, she suddenly felt nausious.

"Lew Chuckler Juergens, you put me down this instant, damn it!" she yelled, unable to stifle the laugh on her lips.

"Men's got the power!" Chuckler teased in a sing-song tone.

The hunk of a man with a hysteric teen over his shoulder passed 1st lieutenant Corrigan who watched in awe with a grin on his face – until,

"Oh, Juergens, watch out for that-."

"OUCH!"

He winched "Huge branch there."

The lieutenant shook his head with a smile plastered on his face as the nurse's and PFC's friends past him as well, their smiles wide enough to cover their whole face.

"Chuckler!" Lucy exclaimed, being pretty sure she had got a concussion from that damned branch. It sure felt that way.

"What, you angry with me, sweet heart?" Chuckler asked, feigning shock, with a grin on his face.

"Damned straight!"

Chuckler pretended to whimper and laughs from the men behind them were heard.

_Goddamn it._


	6. Man Down

_Hey guys! Summer Holidays has begun__, and hopefully I will write and update a lot this summer before 9__th__ grade begins and more homework and final tests is occurring in August. I will try to update as frequent as possible, but my interest and inspiration comes and goes like hell – so all I'm saying is: Don't expect anything. Thank you for your patience. I still hope that the interest in this story is lasting._

_-LovingBOBThePacific xxx_

* * *

**Loyal, Timid, Ridiculously adorable; Yup, that's our fieldnurse**

**Chapter Five – Man Down:**

* * *

_August 7, 1942 – Guadalcanal_

They could hear crickets and mosquitoes everywhere they went. Occasionally Lucy would lift her feet above the high grass straws, to see if any insects had caught onto her trousers. And up 'till now, luckily (for the insects), they hadn't. The grass which had a pretty light green color made the teen think of Hawaii before wartime.

A reflection of Pearl Harbor after the attack flashed before her eyes, causing her to tense as some not-so-nice images of what the grass looked like back then. A mix between green, black soot and red; the black and red stood out the most.

The atmosphere around her was tense as well, mostly because of slightly other reasons. Lucy's unit carried their rifles on their shoulders; the medics their bags and finally the mortar and machinegun squads carried respectively their equipment.

Most of them turned and looked at their left when a bird's wings were flapping. That could also be a sign of movement.

"Ease up, kiddo. The Japs aren't supposed to be around here" Doctor Vanderbilt nudged her gently, offering her a soothing smile.

"Ehh, well…" Lucy drawled, leaning closer to her Medical CO, her voice low "I kind of don't trust intelligence and their oh-so-wise words."

"Why not?" Vanderbilt smirked.

"It's seen before; they assume that the enemy's not around in that and that area. The next day a whole platoon has been slaughtered."

The doc chuckled "Point taken. I think you could be of good use up at intelligence, if you weren't a nurse and a healer."

Lucy looked at him "Honestly, sir. The only intelligence I can offer is the logic and worry for my boys."

The fourteen year old walked on as she now could with her equipment. The heat from her helmet was killing her.

Standing back stood Doc Vanderbilt and looked dumbfounded after the wonder of the now fourteen year old healer.

A smack was given on his shoulder by one of his fellow marines "A real wonder, ain't she?"

Vanderbilt agreed with his comrade "Indeed she is."

~~TP~~

After having been walking for a while, the squads past some long, fallen coconut-trees, some of them which had fallen upon some military jeeps and trucks. The men started slowly to clear out the area, looking for dead or survivors, or potential enemies. They found cut-up thick branches and caves look-alikes, made out of tree. When they found some places and traces after bonfires and bowls of rice scattered on different canvases, the pieces slowly started to fit together inside Lucy's and the men's minds. This had been a Japanese camp.

As they neared the outskirts of a new forest, 1st Lieutenant Corrigan and his assistant put to a halt. Officers got them on their knees as a sign to stop. Lucy ended up with her closest friends being Lucky, Sid, Chuckler, Hoosier, Deacon and Runner.

They didn't speak to one another, just looked around their circumstances. In the distance they could hear crows cackle.

After a few minutes, it was passed down the ranks of men that they were moving out.

Lucy could feel on the men that they grew tenser as they entered the tree line of the new forest.

It was so quiet in there. Almost too quiet after Lucy's taste. No noise, other than the crows and birds squawking and the leaves rustle above them, and the earth's knick and knack as they walked beneath them. A single canteen was clanking here and there as the men rewarded themselves with a taste of water.

Lucy walked right behind Chuckler who walked behind Leckie. Behind her walked Sid and Deacon. Men gave themselves a clasp on their cheek once in a while. Damned mosquitoes.

Dodging twisted, low-hanging branches while looking for tripping-inviting branches on the ground, Lucy could feel her mind slowly start to tire – and it didn't help by that headache she had gained when she banged her head into the thick branch, when Chuckler had literally carried her on his shoulder for a while, excluding his mortar equipment.

They neared a river Lucy could hear, and as the sound of splashing water grew, thus more grew Lucy's thirst. In the end, her stubborn mind gave up and let her be as she drank from her canteen – that drink would last worthwhile.

The river floated quietly, only the smallest of streams carrying small branches with it. The cold water was almost a welcome to the teen's up heated boots.

The river-walking didn't take long, however before they turned into the forest again. This time it went up-hill. With a tired sigh, Lucy gently helped Chuckler with a little shove in the back once in a while. She could feel Sid's calming presence behind her.

Suddenly with an 'oh', Pvt. Gibson fell over a branch behind her and Sid. The medic from before took a grip in his arm "Gibson, you okay?"

"Fuck" Ronnie cursed before answering the medic's question as he was helped up "I'm fine."

"You all right?"

"Yeah. Thanks man."

Lucy and Sid walked almost side by side, nudging each other now and then to keep themselves on their toes.

Suddenly a thwack was heard and everybody almost dropped to their knees. Nothing else happened after that, so soon they were walking up-hill and down-hill again. Over and over again.

For another five minutes they walked before a quiet gasp escaped Lucy's lips, causing Sid to look at her in alarm. She then motioned to the scene before her.

She had seen the cruel and true face of war reality before at Pearl Harbor, yet it seemed to surprise her every time. Dead Americans – no, more exact their bloody limbs lay in the forest side. One of them looked like he had been tortured; his face bloody, battered bruises and the fact that a rope was holding him two places; at his neck and his waist.

"Keep it moving" Corrigan ordered as some of the men stopped at the scene before them. Lucy knew all of them were thinking the same by the looks on the men's faces after wards.

"Damned bastards" Sid muttered as he led a speechless Lucy on with a gently hand on her back.

Lucy had learned by her uncle from she was very little, that there weren't tears enough in one person to cry over every loss she or he came across and would experience in her/his life.

"_Might as well save them for someone you have reason to grief over, Luce.."_

She remembered James' words very clearly and could hear his voice as if he was walking next to her instead of Sid.

During their long march, Lucy's thoughts wandered wild, though she knew it could be dangerous in combat. She had to be up on her toes at all times.

~~TP~~

"What's on your mind, Luce?" Chuckler asked as they settled down for the night. With their shovels, they dug deeper into the earth of some kind of hedgerow, which was already there.

"Well…" The teen trailed off "Besides for the massive headache I have, _Chuck_, I think of my uncle and Joe. And then there's of course my dad…"

"Lu, I thought we had made ourselves clear. We won't let the lunatic of your father come near you" stated Leckie seriously.

"Besides, he would have to cross a goddamn ocean full of Japanese destroyers and us before he could get to you" Runner put in, trying to bring some humor into the situation, being successful as Lucy smiled genuinely.

"For not to talk about the goddamned jungle we just went through" Chuckler muttered, brushing some sweat off his forehead.

"Thanks guys" Lucy almost whispered, her voice touched to the edge.

"Don't act that surprised, Luce. You know we'd do anything for you" Sid smirked, ruffling her hair, much to Lucy's dismay.

Her following sentence was drowned out by laughter after Runner told one of his infamous jokes "I'd do anything for you too."

"All right!"

Lieutenant Corrigan's voice cut through the air, demanding attention from his platoon "As said before, we'll settle her for tonight. When nightfall comes, I want light and noise-discipline. This is not a fieldtrip, guys. We're at war, though the Japs took the tail between their legs when they saw us."

The captain's comment made several men chuckle.

"Three men at least at every station – one to watch, two to sleep. Now, get to work."

"Yes, sarge!" sounded the reply.

Lucy said her farewells and 'be careful' before she made her way over to find her CO.

As nightfall came, the rain began pouring down in unreasonable streams.

"_Great. Most of us are going to catch a flu or worse, pneumonia before the end of the night" _Lucy thought bitterly to herself as she and Doc Vanderbilt tried to keep warm by staying close to each other, both of them shivering ridiculously.

Nothing else were heard but the sound of rain splashing down everywhere, and on top if that, a minor thunderstorm seemed to have blessed them with its noisy presence.

It was pitch black; Lucy couldn't see a hand before her. She could hear men breathing, curses and few cases of snoring. Mixed in with the thunderstorm. Lovely.

Suddenly, a man exclaimed "Take cover!" before hell went loose. Every man woke up and started to fire where they thought an invisible enemy could be.

"Cease fire!" another bellowed shortly after "Cease fire! Cease fire!"

The shooting died down as everyone listened after noises that could confirm that there was someone, or had been.

Lucy's instinct shook inside her. Someone had been hit. She was about to sneak out of the hole when Vanderbilt stopped her.

"Where do you think you're going, lieutenant?" he questioned.

"What if someone's hit?" Lucy defended herself.

"No." The Doctor shook his head "It's too risky."

"Doc, please. My instincts haven't been wrong before."

Vanderbilt sighed "And what do your instincts tell you now?"

"That one of our men are hurt and possibly shot dead. By friendly fire." Lucy sank a lump in her throat. Truth to be told, she hated her instincts, because they haven't been wrong thus far. And she hated the fact that they lost one of their own this early into the 'game.'

"Fine, but you take a rifle man with you" Vanderbilt ordered and so it did.

Lucy went down the line of men to inform Corrigan and their commanding officer about the mission. They had both looked at her with doubting and unsure looks (Corrigan a little more positive towards her, though), but when they were told that Doc Vanderbilt had given her permission, Corrigan picked Ronnie Gibson to go with her.

"Hold your fire!" Corrigan whispered before Gibson and Lucy made their way out in the field "Nurse and rifleman are coming through."

Lucy could sense the negative excitement from her boys down the line where she knew where they lay, but she shrugged it off. Her job was to patch people up, and some times that job craved that she put others before herself.

It was almost an impossible mission as the two still couldn't see anything. She heard Gibson curse behind her. He would probably rather be off this mission. And Lucy couldn't blame him. The lieutenant and the two CO's had taken a large chance with her. A very risky one. But they showed her the trust she needed. And she would be damned if she let them down.

Lucy suddenly heard an 'ooompf' behind, followed by a series of curses by Private Gibson.

"Fucking twice" he muttered as he hoisted himself up again after he tripped over something he at first thought it was a root, but it wasn't.

"Jesus Christ. Lieutenant Campbell?" He whispered panicked. She could sense the obvious fear in his voice. Her instincts had been right so far; now it was just a question of whether it was one of them, or a single Japanese soldier who screamed for suicide.

Slowly she went down on her knees beside Gibson, slowly feeling her way to where he still was holding something. She winched. An arm.

"Flashlight" she hissed.

They had been allowed to take a flashlight with them, but they could only use it in their absolute need. This was a need.

The flashlight had to work the first time, because the teen had made a deal with the captain about only putting on the light once as a signal to it was them and not the enemy.

She almost crossed her fingers but the light went on and stayed there. Something got stuck in Lucy's throat as she saw a medical badge on the jacket the dead person was wearing. She already knew the answer of what side the person was on, but she took hold of the flashlight and lit the way up the man's face. It was the medic who had helped Gibson as he fell the first time.

"Shit" Gibson cursed, looking away.

It was too late. Poor guy didn't have a pulse; his chest didn't rise, nor fall and when Lucy lit the flashlight into his eyes, she saw no sign of life.

Yeah. Shit.

"Man down!"


End file.
